*Disclaimer: These results are from a sampling period of 3 weeks. These results could change drastically over the next month depending on what type of events that take place. These findings should not be viewed as the overall quality of the streams, but more as a snap shot of how these streams are doing.
Trends show that most of the sites had an elevated rate of flow just after the rainstorm on 6/12 and 6/14 which gradually decreased over sampling periods. Long Island sites 1 and 2 had little to no flow do to lack of water. Long Island and Marsh Creek site 6 had the heaviest flows on certain dates. The less than 1 flow reading on certain dates for Long Island site 3B and 6B and Marsh Creek site 6 was most likely attributed to pooling. The rate of flow has a large influence on the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water which ultimately provides life to organisms in the stream.
Air temperatures were particularly high during later sampling dates. Warmer air temperatures can increase water temperature which ultimately results in lower dissolved oxygen levels in the streams.
Conductivity levels are dependent upon the levels of inorganic solids in the water. The EPA suggests a range of 150 to 500 microsiemens to support a diversity of aquatic life. Only Long Island site 3A and 4B met the EPA required range for supporting a diversity of life. All other sites may not be suitable for supporting certain intolerant species.
Chemical
There were no reading for phosphates or nitrates except for site 2 Marsh Creek which may be attributed to the nearby use of lawn fertilizer.
The EPA suggests a range between 6 and 9 to support life in a stream. All sites met this criteria. There was a spike in pH at Long Island and Marsh Creek site 2 which could be the result of a nearby source of pollution.
Dissolved oxygen is important because it provides oxygen to all the organisms that live in a stream. Dissolved oxygen is heavily dependent upon water temperature and flow. 4mg/l of dissolved oxygen will support life. All sites met this criteria except for Long Island site 1A and B due to the lack of water there.
Our analysis showed that there was no direct relationship between DO and water temperature at Marsh Creek and that there was a direct relationship between the two at Long Island Creek.
Bacterial
E. coli and coli-form are good indicators that there is a possible nearby sewage leak. Marsh Creek and Long Island Creek both had the highest levels just after the rainstorms on 6/12 and 6/14. Georgia Adopt a Stream usually will not take immediate action on a stream until these levels reach above 10,000 colony forming units per 100 ml. However the EPA suggests that you shouldn't swim in anything that is above 500. There is no cause for alarm for Long Island although the reading were relatively high on 6/12. The real issue is the too numerous to count reading (TNTC) at Marsh Creek site 6 for E. coli and Marsh site 5 and 6 for coli-form.
Chlorophyll The chlorophyll concentrations for the two streams is seen below. It is still too premature to speculate about the irregular fluctuation of levels as one moves downstream. More data will be processed and compared in the next few weeks so check back for updates. Again for a more inclusive look at the chlorophyll analysis click Chlorophyll Analysis
Chl Graph.png
Chl Graph.png
Mean Chlorophyll concentrations in the two steams.
These values are only the average of 10 trees per site at Marsh Creek and 20 trees for Long Island Creek. These values are on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the most at risk for failure. Most sites are at medium risk for failure for an average of all trees per site.
There are no trends for Marsh Creek or Long Island Creek for land use. The percentages vary from 27.3 to 34.1 for Marsh and 22.7 to 36.2 for Long Island. These inconsistencies reflect the complexity of urban environments and how land use changes over time. Forest and Agriculture make up a very small percentage of land use in these areas. However, as far as non-point source pollution is concerned, more attention needs to be given to areas of higher impervious quotients such as paved areas and concrete. Particular categories of interest are Apartments/Townhomes in 2008 and Commercial in 2009 for Marsh Creek due to the higher percentages. The areas for Long Island Creek are Apartments/Townhomes in 2003/2008 and Commercial in 2009.
A Comparison of Long Island Creek from 2011 to 2012
In June of 2011 KSU students conducted this same study on Long Island Creek. While it is only a one month study, the collection of baseline data will be useful in the future if any remedial action is taken. The results of the 2012 study were compared to the results of the 2011 in order to suggest any improvement or deterioration of the stream's health over the year. The following links provide the comparison of each of the recorded measurements for both years. Physical ParametersChemical ParametersE.coli Results
*Disclaimer: These results are from a sampling period of 3 weeks. These results could change drastically over the next month depending on what type of events that take place. These findings should not be viewed as the overall quality of the streams, but more as a snap shot of how these streams are doing.
Physical
*Measurements are in cubic feet per second
Trends show that most of the sites had an elevated rate of flow just after the rainstorm on 6/12 and 6/14 which gradually decreased over sampling periods. Long Island sites 1 and 2 had little to no flow do to lack of water. Long Island and Marsh Creek site 6 had the heaviest flows on certain dates. The less than 1 flow reading on certain dates for Long Island site 3B and 6B and Marsh Creek site 6 was most likely attributed to pooling. The rate of flow has a large influence on the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water which ultimately provides life to organisms in the stream.
Air temperatures were particularly high during later sampling dates. Warmer air temperatures can increase water temperature which ultimately results in lower dissolved oxygen levels in the streams.
Conductivity levels are dependent upon the levels of inorganic solids in the water. The EPA suggests a range of 150 to 500 microsiemens to support a diversity of aquatic life. Only Long Island site 3A and 4B met the EPA required range for supporting a diversity of life. All other sites may not be suitable for supporting certain intolerant species.
Chemical
There were no reading for phosphates or nitrates except for site 2 Marsh Creek which may be attributed to the nearby use of lawn fertilizer.
pH charts.xlsx
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The EPA suggests a range between 6 and 9 to support life in a stream. All sites met this criteria. There was a spike in pH at Long Island and Marsh Creek site 2 which could be the result of a nearby source of pollution.Dissolved oxygen is important because it provides oxygen to all the organisms that live in a stream. Dissolved oxygen is heavily dependent upon water temperature and flow. 4mg/l of dissolved oxygen will support life. All sites met this criteria except for Long Island site 1A and B due to the lack of water there.
Our analysis showed that there was no direct relationship between DO and water temperature at Marsh Creek and that there was a direct relationship between the two at Long Island Creek.
Bacterial
E. coli and coli-form are good indicators that there is a possible nearby sewage leak. Marsh Creek and Long Island Creek both had the highest levels just after the rainstorms on 6/12 and 6/14. Georgia Adopt a Stream usually will not take immediate action on a stream until these levels reach above 10,000 colony forming units per 100 ml. However the EPA suggests that you shouldn't swim in anything that is above 500. There is no cause for alarm for Long Island although the reading were relatively high on 6/12. The real issue is the too numerous to count reading (TNTC) at Marsh Creek site 6 for E. coli and Marsh site 5 and 6 for coli-form.
Chlorophyll
The chlorophyll concentrations for the two streams is seen below. It is still too premature to speculate about the irregular fluctuation of levels as one moves downstream. More data will be processed and compared in the next few weeks so check back for updates. Again for a more inclusive look at the chlorophyll analysis click Chlorophyll Analysis
Mean Chlorophyll concentrations in the two steams.
Urban Ecology
Chlorophyll Analysis
These values are only the average of 10 trees per site at Marsh Creek and 20 trees for Long Island Creek. These values are on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the most at risk for failure. Most sites are at medium risk for failure for an average of all trees per site.Remote Sensing
(use A site for link)
There are no trends for Marsh Creek or Long Island Creek for land use. The percentages vary from 27.3 to 34.1 for Marsh and 22.7 to 36.2 for Long Island. These inconsistencies reflect the complexity of urban environments and how land use changes over time. Forest and Agriculture make up a very small percentage of land use in these areas. However, as far as non-point source pollution is concerned, more attention needs to be given to areas of higher impervious quotients such as paved areas and concrete. Particular categories of interest are Apartments/Townhomes in 2008 and Commercial in 2009 for Marsh Creek due to the higher percentages. The areas for Long Island Creek are Apartments/Townhomes in 2003/2008 and Commercial in 2009.
A Comparison of Long Island Creek from 2011 to 2012
In June of 2011 KSU students conducted this same study on Long Island Creek. While it is only a one month study, the collection of baseline data will be useful in the future if any remedial action is taken. The results of the 2012 study were compared to the results of the 2011 in order to suggest any improvement or deterioration of the stream's health over the year. The following links provide the comparison of each of the recorded measurements for both years. Physical ParametersChemical ParametersE.coli ResultsIntroduction | Stakeholders | Water Quality | Urban Ecology | Land Use Mapping | Study Sites | Methods | Results | Conclusions